Ukrainian forces shot down a Russian Su-34 fighter jet over Russia's Kursk Oblast overnight on Aug. 14 amid Kyiv's incursion into the region, Ukraine's General Staff reported.
Ukraine's unprecedented operation, ongoing since last week, seems to have taken Russia by surprise, as Kyiv says its forces seized control of 74 settlements and over 1,000 square kilometers of land after they broke through the weakly defended border.
Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile forces destroyed another Russian Su-34 during a combat mission, according to the military. The Kyiv Independent could not verify this claim.
A first-person-view (FPV) drone operated by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) hit a Russian military helicopter in mid-air in Kursk Oblast, a source in the agency told the Kyiv Independent on Aug. 9.
Another Russian helicopter, Mi-28, was reportedly hit by an FPV drone in Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6 in what some called the first such successful attack in history.
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Heorhii Tykhyi, said on Aug. 13 that the incursion aims to prevent Moscow from sending reinforcements to the front in Donetsk Oblast.
It is also designed to disrupt Russian logistics and halt cross-border attacks in lieu of Ukraine's long-range strikes with Western arms, which remain under unofficial restrictions from partners.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, citing undisclosed U.S. officials, that Moscow is withdrawing at least some of its forces from Ukraine to counter Kyiv's incursion in Russia's Kursk Oblast.
Oleg Sukhov
